Welsh authorities target Aberthaw plant for STEP project

Welsh councillors are looking to submit a bid for the Aberthaw power station, located just outside of Barry, Wales for a prototype nuclear fusion reactor as part of the government STEP programme.

The plant is a disused coal-fired plant and was the last of its kind in Wales before the plant was decommissioned in 2019.

Read more: Dounreay site suggested for UK's first fusion plant

Harnessing nuclear fusion may be essential in decarbonising Britain's future, but critics are concerned nuclear power takes too long to get up and running, and more prompt solutions are required.

The STEP project, short for Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production, is part of a greater pledge for £222 million in funding to design the project once the chosen site is selected. This will be followed by a multi-billion pound construction investment.

Local authorities had until the end of March to submit their bids, which means the selection process is currently underway.

Sites across the UK were chosen for a number of reasons including jobs and local economic impacts. It is also expected that a pre-built nuclear plant will take less time to convert over starting from scratch.

However, the plant - regardless of which site is selected - is unlikely to be open until 2040.

Fusion technology is still in its early stages and reactors will require a large amount of energy to power up owing to the need for extremely high temperatures. It has been dubbed a "semi-futuristic" concept owing to there not yet being a fusion reactor that produces more energy than it consumes.

It has the potential to generate highly efficient clean energy, but currently only exists in the form of experimental reactors.

Back in December, the British government urged local communities to suggest potential sites for the plant, which has led to a number of authorities placing their bids.

During a recent cabinet meeting, Councillor Lis Burnett, deputy leader of the Vale of Glamorgan council, said: “Last October, the secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy announced £220 million towards the conceptual design for a fusion power station," as reported by local newspaper Barry & District News.

“It’s an innovative plan for a commercially viable fusion power station offering the realistic prospect of constructing a power plant by 2040. In November last year, the UK government invited expressions of interest to identify sites in the UK,” she added.

Read more: UK scouts for first nuclear fusion site

Other potential sites include Dounreay in the Scottish Highlands, Moorside in Cumbria, Chapelcross in Dumfries and Galloway and Ratcliffe-on-Soar in Nottinghamshire.

The final decision will be made by the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), which will be passed onto the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Kwasi Kwarteng, in the form of a recommendation.

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